Does the Bible contain evidence to convince us it is true? Did the writers of the New Testament claim to testify as eyewitnesses of the things they wrote? How important is eyewitness testimony? How can we know whether the testimony of witnesses is valid?
Introduction:
Many people lack appreciation for eyewitness testimony for God and His word.
An online student stated that no gospel writers were eyewitnesses of the things they wrote.
Even people who defend the inspiration of Scripture often stress other useful topics but neglect the value of eyewitness testimony.
This study aims to examine the role of eyewitness testimony as confirmation for the word of God.
The Value of Eyewitness Testimony
The Bible as Sufficient Grounds To Produce Faith.
Many teachers offer evidence from outside the Bible (“external evidence”) to confirm the Bible’s claims: archaeology, science, and secular history. These are valuable, but some people put greater faith in this evidence than in the Bible itself. The Bible claims it is sufficient.
John 20:29-31 – Bible writers recorded sufficient evidence to convince us to believe that Jesus is the Christ, so we can have life in His name even though we did not personally see. (John 17:20)
Romans 10:17 – So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.
2 Timothy 3:16,17 – Scripture itself is sufficient to provide us to every good work. If believing is a good work, then the Bible is adequate to provide the evidence we need.
Acts 17:2,3 – Bible teachers used Scripture to prove Jesus to be the Christ. (Acts 15:7)
If the Bible is true, it should itself provide us with sufficient evidence to believe. We will see that eyewitness testimony is fundamental to the evidence in Scripture.
Eyewitness Testimony as Evidence for Historical Truth
In daily life we determine fundamental beliefs based on eyewitness testimony.
* Most of us believe who our parents were. Do you remember seeing your parents at birth? You believe based on the testimony of witnesses. Your parents and other people told you who your parents are. If you have a birth certificate, that is simply written testimony of witnesses about your parents like the Bible is written testimony that God is your heavenly Father.
* The testimony of witnesses determines historical truth in our courtrooms. Without personally observing a crime, a judge and jury reach a verdict that may result in imprisonment or even death of the defendant. That verdict is largely based on the testimony of witnesses.
* Historians study the evidence of witnesses, especially first-hand accounts from people who personally observed an event or person. Also of great value are records left by people who personally heard the testimony of eyewitnesses.
Of the things we believe, most of them we came to believe through testimony of witnesses.
The Bible confirms that this kind of evidence validates facts of history.
Deuteronomy 19:15 – One witness shall not rise against a man concerning any iniquity he commits; by the mouth of two or three witnesses the matter shall be established. (Deuteronomy 17:6; Numbers 35:30; Hebrews 10:28)
Matthew 18:16 – By the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established. style='font-size: 9.0pt'>( 2 Corinthians 13:1; 1 Timothy 5:19)
John 8:17 – Jesus confirmed that the law said the testimony of two men is true.
Eyewitness accounts confirm history: people, places, and events. Many historical truths have nothing to do with religion, morality, or doctrine. But much of the Old Testament and more than half of the New Testament records historical events.
The life of Jesus and other Bible characters are matters of history. The Bible records miracles, fulfilled prophecy, and especially the resurrection as historical facts confirmed by eyewitnesses. The unique character of Bible teaching is that it claims to be based on history. But history is confirmed primarily by the testimony of witnesses.
Eyewitness Testimony in Scripture
Here are some of the eyewitnesses whose testimony is recorded in the New Testament.
Bible Writers as Eyewitnesses
Bible writers often claimed to be first-hand eyewitnesses of the events they wrote about or else they carefully recorded accounts they heard or read from those who were eyewitnesses.
The apostles
The apostles followed Jesus for over three years. They personally heard His teaching, observed His life and miracles, and saw Him alive again after His death. They repeatedly claimed that their statements were based on personal eyewitness testimony.
Acts 1:1-3 – Jesus presented Himself alive to His apostles so they saw and spoke with Him for forty days following His death. In this way He demonstrated Himself to be raised from the dead by “many infallible proofs.”
Acts 1:8 – Jesus told the apostles they would be His witnesses throughout the earth.
Acts 1:21,22 – To be an apostle one had to be an eyewitness of Jesus’ resurrection.
Acts 2:32 – Peter stated that he and the other apostles were witnesses that God had raised Jesus. Just fifty days after His death and resurrection, they preached they saw Him alive again.
Acts 10:39-41 – Peter and the other apostles were witnesses of all things Jesus did. The people killed Him, but God raised Him up on the third day and showed Him openly to witnesses who ate and drank with Him after He arose from the dead.
Matthew
Matthew 9:9; 10:1-8 – Matthew was one of the original apostles, so his record constitutes written eyewitness testimony. Every time the account says the apostles (or twelve disciples) were present for an event, this would include Matthew. He wrote what he had witnessed.
Luke
Luke 1:1-4 – Luke wrote a history of the life of Christ. He was not a personal eyewitness of Jesus’ life, but he served as a historian to record events that the apostles and others witnessed.
Acts 1:1-3 – Luke wrote Acts as a history of the early church. He was an eyewitness to many events he recorded. He often traveled with Paul (Colossians 4:14; 2 Timothy 4:11; Philemon 24 and many “we” passages such as Acts 16:6-10). He personally heard Paul’s teaching, witnessed his miracles, and heard his testimony regarding Jesus’ appearance.
Luke did not write legends handed down for generations. He wrote what he learned from eyewitnesses so we could know these things are “certain,” not myth or fable. His writings have been thoroughly researched. His reputation as a first-rate historian is thoroughly documented.
John
John was one of the original apostles, so all we have said about apostles was true of him.
John 20:30,31 – Jesus did His miracles in the presence of the apostles, so John personally witnessed them. He recorded them in writing so we could believe and have life in Jesus’ name.
John 21:24 – John wrote his testimony and testified that it was true. (20:19,20; 21:1; 19:35)
1 John 1:1-3 – He bore witness about what he and others heard, saw with their eyes, and handled with their hands.
Paul
1 Corinthians 15:3-8 – Paul declared the gospel he had preached, including the resurrection. He lists various appearances, including Jesus’ appearance to him. 1 Corinthians was one of the earliest New Testament books, written just 20-25 years after Jesus’ death. Paul says many other witnesses were still alive and could be consulted.
2 Corinthians 12:11,12 – Paul testified that he had done signs, wonders, and miracles that confirmed his apostleship. He claimed these miracles occurred in the presence of the people to whom he wrote, so they would have known whether or not he did these miracles.
(Acts 13:31; 22:15; 26:16)
Peter
Peter too was one of the original apostles. All we have said about apostles was true of him.
2 Peter 1:16-18 – Peter testified that, rather than following fables about Jesus, the apostles were eyewitnesses of His majesty. Specifically, regarding the transfiguration, he testified that they heard the voice that spoke on the mountain, saying that this was the Son of God. (5:1)
This means nearly the whole New Testament was written by eyewitnesses or historians who wrote what they heard from eyewitnesses. The only exceptions might be Mark (who, like Luke, wrote the testimony of others, especially Peter), Hebrews, James, and Jude.
All who seek to know the truth must recognize that the New Testament is eyewitness history.
Testimony of Other Eyewitnesses Recorded in Scripture
The following witnesses did not write their own testimony in the Bible; but acting as historians, Bible writers recorded the testimony of these and other eyewitnesses.
Jesus’ mother Mary
Luke 1:26-38 – Mary testified regarding the Virgin Birth. She had no relationship with a man, but the angel Gabriel told her Jesus would be conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit. Luke records the testimony of Mary and the angel about the Virgin Birth (and other events).
Joseph
Matthew 1:18-25 – Likewise, Joseph knew that he had not caused Mary to conceive, but an angel told him that Mary had conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit. So the apostle Matthew recorded the testimony of Joseph and of the angel again confirming the Virgin Birth.
John the Baptist
John 1:29-34 – John the apostle recorded the testimony of John the Baptist that Jesus is the Son of God because he saw the Spirit descend from heaven like a dove and remain on Him. Other accounts testify that, at Jesus’ baptism, the Father testified from heaven that Jesus is His Son.
Moses and Elijah
2 Peter 1:16-18; Matthew 17:1-6 – Peter, Matthew, and Luke testified that Moses and Elijah came back from the dead as miraculous evidence regarding Jesus. God spoke from heaven acknowledging Jesus as His Son. (Mark 9:2-8; Luke 9:28-36)
We could call many other witnesses whose testimony is recorded in the New Testament.
(Matthew 8:2-4; Luke 17:11-14)
The Validity of Eyewitness Testimony
Bible Witnesses Qualify as Trustworthy.
Witnesses may lie or be mistaken. So some have claimed the Bible writers imagined or hallucinated what they testified. But consider the quality of the testimony of the witnesses.
* The number of witnesses – numerous authors wrote their own testimony and recorded what they personally heard from many other eyewitnesses
* The number of events – witnesses testified regarding events from more than three years of Jesus’ life and many years of the early church: miracles, fulfilled prophecies, and the resurrection. Acts 1:3 – Jesus provided “many infallible proofs.”
* The opportunity of the witnesses to observe the events – they were personally involved in the events. They testified regarding things they saw and heard. They touched Jesus. They ate with Him. They spent long periods with Him.
1 John 1:1-4 – John bore witness of what he (and others) had seen, handled with his hands, and heard, so we may have fellowship with God and Christ.
* The honesty of the witnesses – they were not gullible. They demanded evidence. They admitted their weaknesses and errors: Jesus’ teaching often corrected and rebuked their desires and preconceived ideas; they deserted Jesus at His arrest; Peter denied Him; they disbelieved the initial reports of Jesus’ resurrection.
Paul was an enemy who persecuted the gospel and would never have been converted without overwhelming proof. Would dishonest men paint themselves so unfavorably?
Never have any facts of history been confirmed by better eyewitness testimony.
Other Witnesses Still Living Could Be Consulted.
Bible writers recorded their testimony, not generations later as some claim, but while other people were alive who could verify it.
3000 converts on Pentecost
Acts 2:22-24 – Just fifty days after Jesus’ death and resurrection, Peter proclaimed that this crowd of thousands of people knew that Jesus had done wonders, signs, and miracles among them. This was God’s way of attesting to Jesus. These people would have known if this claim was false. Yet 3000 responded by obeying the message (verse 41).
500 witnesses
1 Corinthians 15:6 – Paul said that, on one occasion, more than 500 people saw Jesus alive after His resurrection. Most were still alive when Paul wrote, so others could question them.
The Corinthians
2 Corinthians 12:11,12 – Paul claimed that he did signs, wonders, and miracles in the presence of the people to whom he wrote. They would have known whether this was true.
Other people could question these living witnesses to substantiate the apostles’ claims. Why would teachers make such statements unless they knew people would verify their accounts?
(King Agrippa – Acts 26:26)
Bible Writers Faced Overwhelming Persecution, Yet Never Recanted.
Matthew 23:29-36; Acts 7:51-60 – God’s prophets in every age were persecuted, even slain.
John 15:18-21; 16:1-4 – Jesus repeatedly warned that His followers would be persecuted.
Acts 5:17-42; 12:1,2 – The apostles were imprisoned, beaten, and even slain for preaching their testimony.
2 Corinthians 11:22-28 – In nearly every city where he went, Paul was persecuted, beaten, imprisoned, or had to flee for his life. Acts ends with Paul a prisoner awaiting trial (Acts 28).
No apostle was ever wealthy, ever held in high esteem by society, or ever appointed to high political office. All suffered a lifetime of persecution, imprisonment, beatings, rejection, and ridicule. Nearly all died for their testimony. Who would suffer a lifetime of opposition and even martyrdom for a testimony he knew to be a lie?
Gospel Accounts Are Not Hearsay, Rumors, or Legends Written Generations Later.
Some claim the writers recorded legends or rumors written generations after the events. But the writers claimed they personally witnessed the events they recorded or they recorded what they heard from other witnesses. They denied they were writing fables or legends.
1 Timothy 4:7 – We must reject “old wives’ fables” and instead follow after godliness.
2 Timothy 4:3,4 – Paul warned that some would not want sound doctrine but would turn their ears away from the truth and be turned aside to fables.
2 Peter 1:16,20,21 – Specifically, Peter claimed that the apostles did not follow cunningly devised fables when they made known the power and coming of Jesus Christ.
The Bible writers themselves disprove the claim that they were honestly mistaken. They claimed they wrote eyewitness accounts, not fables or legends. If they did not write eyewitness evidence, they would not be good men nor would the Bible be a good book. Either their records are true, or they should be rejected as frauds.
Conclusion
There is no middle ground regarding the claims of Jesus and the gospel. Either we must accept the Bible as the true word of God, or else we must totally reject Jesus and the Bible as frauds like the Quran and the Book of Mormon.
The testimony of the witnesses is so overwhelming that, had they testified regarding any other subject, their testimony would be universally accepted without doubt. People reject the testimony, either because they have been misled by false teachers, or because they do not want to conform their lives to Scripture as God’s word.
We may appreciate external evidence that confirms the accuracy of the Bible. But the Bible itself is sufficient evidence. The Bible confirms itself enough to lead honest hearts to believe.
What will you do with the testimony of the witnesses?
(c) Copyright David E. Pratte, 2024; gospelway.com
